


Never Forget Her

by dinochicknugget



Category: Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: Cybermen - Freeform, Daleks - Freeform, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-21
Updated: 2019-08-27
Packaged: 2020-03-08 21:28:15
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 11
Words: 15,212
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18902986
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dinochicknugget/pseuds/dinochicknugget
Summary: The Doctor and Rose are traveling when they stumble onto a case. Along the way, they meet a mysterious stranger who seems like an old friend. Not even the Doctor knows what happens next. Should read kind of like an episode, but with more feels





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hey guys! I’ve been super into writing the Doctor and Rose lately and this is the first of many WIPs. I am going to try my best to keep to a posting schedule with this story. It’s probably going to be every Monday at 9:30 EST. I promise I’m really gonna try with this schedule, and I hope y’all enjoy the story. Comments and kudos are always appreciated.

Rose woke up, and looked around. She could hear the Doctor as he moved around the console room. She had better get in there before he decided that the TARDIS needed another upgrade. She didn’t want to end up on some random planet again, after the TARDIS dumped them out because the Doctor had decided to switch up another lever. She hurriedly got dressed, and walked to the console room. As she entered, she saw the Doctor rushing around the console, and heard the familiar whoosh of the TARDIS start. 

“Where are we going today, Doctor?” she asked, as she circled the console. 

“I heard about a carnival on Poosh. It’s supposed to be the greatest in all the galaxies,” the Doctor answered enthusiastically.

The TARDIS landed with a jolt, and Rose rushed to stand beside the door. The Doctor looked out the door and then back at Rose.

“Allons-y,” he said, rushing out the door with Rose trailing closely behind her. 

She felt like she had stepped into a wonderland. The air around her smelled like fairy floss. She saw the most fanciful rides around her. There was a Ferris Wheel that touched the clouds. Rose couldn’t even see the top. She saw an anti gravity roller coaster, and a carousel that had real horses that flew in a circle around a huge flashing rainbow structure. She looked over her shoulder at the Doctor only to see that he wasn’t there.

“Doctor! Doctor!” she said. She looked around through the crowd and saw a flash of a pinstriped suit and ruffled hair. “Doctor!” Rose called as she ran after him. She shoved her way through the crowd. He kept getting farther ahead as Rose worked her way against the crowd. She broke into a run. “Where are you going?” Rose asked as she finally caught up to the Doctor. 

“Have you noticed some of the people around here? They’re acting strange, and they seem to be coming from this direction,” he explained. 

“Doctor,” Rose pleaded. ”I thought we were gonna have a nice, normal day.”

“But isn’t this so much more exciting.”

“I hate it when you’re right.” 

“Excuse me,” the Doctor said as he stopped a woman walking past them on the sidewalk. “Can you tell what’s happening down this road.”

“Construction,” The woman said simply.

“Can you tell me what kind?”

“I’m sorry. What are your credentials?”

“We’re theme park inspectors,” the Doctor said holding up his psychic paper, as him and Rose smiled at the woman, trying to look nonchalant. 

“We were just wondering if this carnival is safe and up to date,” Rose interjected. “Can you please tell us what’s happening down the street? You know, for our records?”

“Um… the men working there told us that it was about installing a new ride. They took in some people to test ride it, but they sent the rest of us away. It felt as though some force was telling me to leave ma’am, so I didn’t argue, and I went.” 

“Thank you for your time, ma’am,” the Doctor said before grabbing Rose’s hand turning away.

The pair continued making their way through the crowd. Rose noticed more around her now. The people streaming past her in the opposite direction all had deeply troubled looks on their faces.

Suddenly, Rose noticed another rather harried looking man rushing past them. He was a younger man, about Rose’s age, with floppy brown hair, and a giddy sense about him. He was wearing a blazer paired with a bow tie and a dress shirt. He had the same inquisitive look on his face as the Doctor sometimes got. In fact, it was the same look as the one he was wearing right this moment.

“Doctor,” Rose said, as she grabbed his shoulder and slowed him to a halt. “Look at that man.” She pointed to the strange man she had seen earlier. “He’s headed in the same direction we are.”

“So?” the Doctor asked, missing the point. Sometimes he got too into his own thought to properly observe the what was happening and the voices of the people around him. 

“Everybody else is walking away.”

“Oh my god, Rose Tyler! You are brilliant! An absolute genius!”

They made their way over to the man, hand in hand so that one of them didn’t get lost in the crowd.

“Pardon me,” Rose began. “Sir? I’m sorry. Sir?”

“Oh… yes, hello,” the slightly disheveled young man said, as though he just noticed that he was being directly addressed. He looked up and it was as though all motion on the planet of Poosh had stopped. “...Rose?”

“I’m sorry, what?” Rose asked, slightly incredulously. “How do you know my name?”

“Oh… right… that… I’m a uh… tad bit psychic,” the mysterious man said, not ever looking up from Rose. It was as though the worlds revolved around her.

“Can you tell us what you’re looking for or why you’re here?” the Doctor interjected, seemingly uncomfortable with the amount of attention this stranger was paying to Rose. “We think we might be able to help.”

“I’m here traveling,” he answered. 

“Care to elaborate?” Rose teased as she flashed him a smile.

“I recently lost some friends of mine, and I’ve been traveling to help clear my mind. I noticed that some people were looking troubled and I figured it would take my mind off things to help ease theirs. It’s kind of what I do,” the stranger finished with a cocky smile. 

“Interesting. We were looking to do the same thing,” Rose said.”Maybe we could help each other out. 

“Rose,’ the Doctor said, leaning in to whisper softly in her ear. “I don’t know if that’s a good idea. Something feels off about him, and I can feel some anomalies in the Time Vortex. We can’t partner with just anybody that we find on the street for this.”

Rose pulled the Doctor aside and began to talk to him softly. 

“Whatever happened to keeping your friends close and your enemies closer? It’ll be easier to figure this out with more people on our side, and this man seems knowledgeable. Maybe finding out more about him would help explain whatever is going on around here with the Time Vortex, and partnering with him is the best way to get closer to him.”

They turned around, and faced the stranger again.

“So what do you say?” Rose asked. “Partners?”

The man looked flustered and began to stutter. 

“I… um… That’s not a good idea.”

“Please,” Rose whined.

“Fine,” the man said, his strong resolve seemingly melting off of him.

“Brilliant!” the Doctor said, before turning around and walking in the direction of the mysterious construction project, expecting the other two to follow behind him. They did, and so it began.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey Guys! I’m super excited to keep writing this story. I’m doing good with this posting schedule so far, but I’m still keeping my fingers crossed. I’m known for my procrastination. This has been super fun to write so far and I hope y’all enjoy this chapter!

“So, do you have a name?” Rose asked the mysterious man. “I can’t keep referring to you as the stranger.”

“Yes,” the man said looking down at Rose. He still hadn’t taken his eyes off her. “I’m the uh… Physician.”

“Ok, Mr. Physician.”

“Oh no. It’s just the Physician,” he said with a small chuckle.

“Ok. So, uh...bow ties?” Rose asked, desperately trying to make small talk.

“Yeah. Bow ties are cool.”

“Yeah. They are, aren’t they?” Rose said laughing madly. She didn’t know why. it wasn’t as if what the Physician had said was all that funny. It was weird, but she found it easy to let loose and just laugh around the Physician. “This is gonna sound mad, but I feel like I know you. Have we met before?”

“No, I would have remembered meeting you, but you should know that I feel the same way,” he responded with a strange look in his eyes like longing or regret. 

Rose smiled up at him. They walked the rest of the way in companionable silence. Occasionally, they would break into quiet spurts of conversation, but truly, just walking side by side felt normal enough, like they didn’t need conversation to feel some nonexistent void. 

They reached the end of the road, and a giant structure loomed over them. The Doctor stopped and turned to face the two of them.

“This must be it. I can feel the psychic interference in the air.” He pulled out his sonic screwdriver and began to scan the air around him. “Just as I thought. There’s a low level perception filter around it to deter any people that wander this way. If that doesn’t work, they have ‘construction’ workers around to further persuade them to leave.”

“What should we do, Doctor?” Rose asked.

“Well,” the Physician interrupted as though Rose had addressed him. “I propose that we act as though we are construction workers. If we get asked any questions about our positions, we’ll just use our psychic paper.”

“How did you know that we have psychic paper?” Rose asked, as she looked up at the Physician.

“Like I said… I’m a bit uh… psychic myself,” he supplied.

The Doctor watched this interaction and looked on with visible discomfort. He didn’t like the way Rose looked at this newcomer, and he certainly didn’t like the way the man looked at her, like he already knew everything about her and might has well be deeply in love with her. He looked at Rose as though she was some long lost, precious object, like she was the sun that lit up his whole world. Something about this man made the Doctor suspicious. He turned around not wanting to seen any more, and prepared to go inside. Something about this made the Doctor feel sick to his stomach, and he was ready for this trip to be over, but he knew he had to get to the bottom of what was going on around here first. 

“Are you two going to stand there all day talking or are we going to help these people?” the Doctor asked “Allons-y!” He walked off to go find the entrance to whatever it was they were building, and Rose and the Physician followed behind him, looking thoroughly chastised. However, after a few minutes, they continued their conversation, just as before. 

“How’s Jackie doing?” the Physician asked as he and Rose trailed along behind the Doctor. 

“How do you know my mum’s name?” Rose asked, looking absolutely gobsmacked. “Oh right! I keep forgetting about that whole psychic thing. It’s weird, right? I mean, it’s just that you talk as if you already know me.”

“Yeah. It almost feels like I know you better than I know myself,” the Physician agreed.

“You’re right. I know I already said this, but it’s strange. The only other person who knows me like you seem to is the Doctor.” The two lapsed into a comfortable silence. They continued walking until the Doctor finally found the entrance.

“What was the plan again?” the Physician asked as the group stopped outside of a large and he suspected heavily armed and guarded door. 

“Well, you’re thick, aren’t you?” the Doctor muttered under his breath. Only Rose heard him, and she swiftly elbowed him in the ribs. “Ughhhhh,” he groaned softly. 

“We are going to go in there. You two will be posing as construction workers, and I will be acting as an upper level management, supervisor type,” Rose said, as she repeated their earlier plan to the Physician kindly. “And you-,” she said, as she turned to stare menacingly at the Doctor. “-will keep you tongue in check and not make any snide comments. We don’t want a repeat of what happened on Anagonia, do we?”

She was referencing the time that the Doctor had mixed up his phraseology when attempting to flex his Anagonian skills. Him and Rose had ended up in the emperor’s prison and had barely escaped with their lives. It was a good thing Rose had such good people skills. They had laughed about it later even though Rose had been terrified at the time, and the Doctor had learned a valuable lesson. He would never forgo the TARDIS’s translation matrix ever again. 

“I promise I won’t insult anybody important.” The Doctor promised, but he soon began to wilt under Rose’s unflinching and impossibly stern glare. Taking the hint, he amended his statement. “I promise I won’t insult anybody.” This seemed to appease her, as she now looked away and focused her attention on the door. 

“How are we going to crack this thing, Doctor?” Rose asked as she stared inquisitively at the door standing before her. He began to sonic it, and soon they heard the telltale click of a lock being unlocked. Rose and the Physician each gave a whispered cheer, and the group entered the building.

When Rose entered, she was taken aback. It was as if she had traveled to a whole other planet. She had stepped out of a futuristic carnival into a cavernous space filled with little labyrinthine like tunnels that branched off from the soaring cave that was the main structure.

“Which way are you thinking, Rose Tyler?” the Doctor asked, as he turned back to look at Rose. 

“What about there,’ she said, pointing to the largest and darkest of the tunnels. She could hear various noises coming for that way. Sometimes it was a mechanical whirring, and sometimes it sounded almost like screaming. Something about that passage felt like it was calling to Rose. She had to go that way. Both the Physician and the Doctor turned to look at her at the same time with almost identical concern in their eyes.

“No!” the two of them practically shouted in unison. When they noticed how aghast Rose looked at the way they had just spoken to her, they both stopped and each of them seemed to lose steam.

“I’m sor-“ the Physician began before the Doctor cut him off.

“It’s just that-,” he began. “Oh I’m sorry. You should go first.”

“No. I insist,’ the Physician said.

“Rose, it's just that I wouldn’t want to put you in any more unnecessary danger then I already do. I promised Jackie that I would always bring you home safe and in one piece, and frankly, I would prefer it if my head stayed attached to my body, be it Jackie or whatever is down that tunnel that rips it off.”

“You were the one who taught me that you always have to follow your instincts, no matter where they lead you,’ Rose said as she tried to reason with the Doctor. She had learned that more often than not it was a hopeless cause, but sometimes it seemed like she was the only one who could. 

“I never said that!” exclaimed the Doctor, looking as though he had been accosted.

“Learned from experience,” Rose supplied. 

“Fine,” the Doctor conceded with an exasperated sigh.

The two plus the Physician began to make their way down the darker path not knowing what awaited them.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I’m so sorry, but I went back and reread this chapter and kind of hated what I wrote. It has since been revised.

As the Doctor, Rose, and the Physician began down the tunnel in front of them. It slowly became darker and darker until Rose could not even see two feet in front of her. She could faintly see the ugliness of the Physician behind her. Longing comfort, she reached for his hand and grasped it firmly. She could feel his hand stiffen in hers before relaxing into it as though it was the most natural thing in the world. A small smile graced Rose’s face as she continued walking down the path, hand in hand.  
Soon, Rose saw a light at the end of the tunnel and not in a metaphorical sense. She saw a small crevice ahead of her with a bare bulb hanging above the entrance to it. As the group got closer, Rose saw a figure standing in the shadows of the minuscule cranny.  
“Hello?” she called out to the shadow of a person. “Hello? Can you hear me?”  
They continued closer. When they were about five feet from the figure, The Doctor turned around and effectively cut off their motion.  
“Stop here,” he said.  
He put out his arm protectively in front of Rose as he inched closer.  
“Hello?” the Doctor asked as he moved his outstretched hand to tap the shoulder of the person standing before him. The figure turned around. It was a short man who looked human, a surprising turn of events when you were traversing time and space. In his hands he was holding a cracked and burned hard hat. It seemed as though they had stumbled across one of the so called construction workers. Then, he bared his fangs. The man had long, horrifying fangs that were now directed at the Doctor.  
“Leave me alone. You shouldn’t be here. Get out!” the man hissed.  
“I’m sorry,” Rose interjected as she stepped forward. “Can you tell us anything about how you ended up here?”  
“Get out!” he screamed again.  
“Plea-“ Rose said.  
“Get out!”  
This time the man stepped towards them in a combative manner, and began to prepare himself as if preparing for a fight. Sensing that the mysterious man would be no help, the Doctor nodded towards Rose, and they backed away slowly, keeping their eyes on the zombified man at all times. The Physician joined them and they continued walking slowly backwards. When they judged that they were at a safe distance, they turned their backs and began to run down the tunnel without thinking about what might be ahead of them.  
A little while later. Rose saw a light begin to grow ahead of her. Soon, her, the Doctor, and the Physician stepped into a large room filled with artificial light. There was a large array of strange machines that Rose would have only expected to see filling the TARDIS. She stepped over a tangle of wires as she crossed to the center of the room and looked around. As Rose continued to walk around, she looked behind a machine and saw a bundle of rags. Then, she noticed that what she thought was a bundle of rags was quivering.  
“Doctor!” she called.”I think I found something that you might want to see.”  
“What is it?” the Physician asked, as he rushed over to her.  
“She was talking to me,” the Doctor said angrily, while he brushed past the Physician. Was that a hint of jealousy that Rose had just heard?  
“That pile of rags there, it’s moving,” Rose explained.  
The Doctor moved slowly towards the pile and began to poke it.  
“Doctor, don’t poke it. What if you aggravate it?” Rose asked in an almost motherly tone.  
“I’m not going to aggravate it.”  
“You always aggravate things,” Rose said as she began to move towards the pile.  
“Rose, don’t touch it!” the Doctor screamed as he moved toward her and threw an arm in front of her in a protective gesture. Concern was etched onto his face.  
“Doctor, I’ve got it,” She moved out from behind him and began to sift through the bundle of rags, making her way to the heart of it. As Rose continued to move the rags aside she uncovered something. A pair of brilliant magenta eyes stared up at her.  
“Doctor, it’s a… person?” Rose said in a unsure voice. The Doctor knelt down beside her, and looked curiously at the person sitting before them swathed in robes.  
“Who are you?” the Doctor asked,but the person didn’t answer. Rose decided to try a softer approach.  
‘Hi,” she said kindly. “My name’s Rose. Can you tell me yours?”  
“I’m Xanthippe.”  
“Can you tell us what you’re doing on the ground? Rose asked as she offered a hand to Xanthippe and pulled her to her feet.  
“I was running from them,” Xanthippe began shakily. “And I fell. I thought they were gonna catch up to me, and then I saw them come in here right after I did. So, I hid, and covered myself with these rags.” She threw the rags of of her shoulders, and dusted herself of. Underneath all of those rags, she had lightly tinted blue skin, and was wearing tight fitting leather armor like clothing.  
“Ah! A native Boromean! What are you doing on Poosh?” the Physician asked.  
“I came to see the carnival, and I don’t know what happened. I woke up in a cave and they had me surrounded.”  
“Who are they?” Rose asked.  
“I don’t know. They were big and they looked like cyborgs, or uh… robots, or something.” Xanthippe stuttered nervously as she shivered involuntarily. Rose looked at the Doctor nervously.  
“You don’t have to say anything mo-,” the Physician said before the Doctor cut him off.  
“Because I know what they are.”  
“Cyberman,” both him and the Physician muttered at the same time with similar distaste.  
“Doctor?” Rose said, looking aghast. She gasped as the Doctor fixed his pair of sad brown eyes on hers. She knew what that look meant. Tears began to prick the backs of her eyes. She was beginning to break down. One her most painful memories was watching her mom, well, her Otherverse mom, be cyberised. “No! It can’t be true,” Rose said. The Doctor looked at her tenderly with a fair amount of worry on his face. The Physician engulfed her in a hug.  
“It’s okay, Rose.” the Physician said. The Doctor watched this with a look of pure disgust.  
Was this newcomer hugging his Rose Tyler? Woah. Where did that come from? Him and Rose had never so much as kissed, let alone the fact that they might have feelings for each other. The Doctor knew he had no right to think of Rose as his.  
“Doctor? Doctor?” Rose asked, waving her hand in front of his face. He snapped out of his reverie. “Are you okay?”  
“Yeah. Sorry. I guess that I just got lost in my thoughts.”  
“Why don’t we keep walking and see what we find?” Rose suggested.  
“No!” Xanthippe screamed. “We can’t go back there. That’s where they are. It’s where they kept me.”  
“I’m sorry Xanthippe, but we have too. It’s the only way to find out what’s going on around here,” Rose said, her voice dripping with compassion.  
“No! I won’t do it. I can’t!” Xanthippe shrieked. “They’ll kill me. They’ll kill us all!” “I promise. Nothing will happen to you on my watch,” the Doctor said sincerely. “You can never make me go back there. Haven’t I already suffered enough? Please don’t involve me in this any further.” “Can I have a word with you, Doctor?” Rose asked before beckoning him over to a corner. “It’s okay. We’ll be fine without her, Doctor.” “It would be nice to have somebody who has even a limited knowledge of this base.” “We can’t make her go any further. I mean, just look at her. She’s practically having a panic attack every time you mention taking her further in the base that she just escaped.” “Fine,” the Doctor said effort crossing back to stand next to Xanthippe. “I understand that we can’t make you go any further. If you continue down the path that we just came for, you will find the exit. We didn’t encounter any trouble on the way here, but remember to be careful. Goodbye Xanthippe.” Xanthippe nodded slowly and softly as she turned around towards the way that they had come. “Ok. Now, that that’s all settled. Allons-y!” the Doctor said before rushing off down the path ahead of him whirled even farther into the Cybermen’s stronghold.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey Guys! I am so sorry about some of the grammatical errors in this chapter. I have since gone back and fixed the ones that I found.

They continued a little farther down the dark tunnel, and once again in a few more meters, it began to get lighter again. This time the Doctor, Rose, and the Physician had wandered into a sprawling cavern that seemed endless. Below her, Rose could see an insane amount of crosswalks and staircases crisscrossing the bottomless cavern below them. She could see the tiny figures of people in the distance, as they ran off to all the places they had to be.  
“Doctor, where do you think they’re all going?” she said as she turned around to look at him.  
“I don’t know,” he answered as he peered over her shoulder to look at them. “But I do know that wherever they are going is where we need to be.”  
“Are you sure that’s wise?” the Physician asked as he walked over to them.  
“I’m sorry, but what are your qualifications? It seems to have slipped my mind,” said the Doctor in a conspicuously faked innocuous tone.  
“Doctor!” Rose reprimanded him. She nudged him in the ribs. “Say you’re sorry.”  
“It’s fine, Rose,” the Physician cut in. “He’s right to ask. I never told you much about myself. I’m from a planet near the now gone Gallifrey called Karn. I was forced to flee due to the most terrible Time War, and so I spent the next few centuries traveling and studying. That’s how I ended up here on Poosh.” The Doctor nodded along with everything the Physician was saying. He understood.  
“I’m sorry,” the Doctor said. “What were you saying earlier?”  
“I just thought that maybe it might not be the brightest idea to follow these people. It could be dangerous.”  
“The danger makes it all the more fun.”  
“Yes. I know,” said the Physician, sounding exasperated. “Of course it is. But we wouldn’t want to put Rose in any danger, would we Doctor?” The Physician gave him a meaningful look, knowing that he had him right where he wanted him. He knew the Doctor would never do anything to put Rose in harm’s way,if he had any say in the matter.  
“Oh no!” Rose interjected. “Don’t drag me into your argument. I’m perfectly willing to do whatever it takes to help these people.”  
“No,” the Doctor said, looking pained. “We can’t. I can’t put you in danger, Rose.”I promised Jackie, pain in the arse that she is, that I would always bring you home safe, and I’ll be damned if I can’t keep this promise.” The Physician nodded at the Doctor in an act of solidarity. “Good. So, it’s settled then. We’ll continue the way we’re going. In fact,” he said pulling out his sonic screwdriver and scanning the environment around them. “The atmospheric pressure has changed, but we don’t seem to be feeling the effects. It’s almost as if we are in some kind of-“  
“Dimensional pocket,” him and the Physician finished at the same time with a look of intense realization on both of their faces. They both turned to look at Rose, expecting to see her standing there, looking on with admiration, but she wasn’t there. They looked around wildly with a sense of mild panic hanging over them. Finally, the Physician spotted her about 50 meters ahead of them on their current pathway. She seemed to be looking out of a window of sorts, but that couldn’t be right. They were in a large underground cavern. There was no way that Rose was looking out of a window.  
“Rose!” the Physician called out as he raced to catch up to her. “Hey. Are you okay? I was worried that something had happened to you.”  
“You don’t need to be worried. I’m right here, safe and in one piece,” Rose said with a giggle. “I swear, sometimes, it seems like you and the Doctor shares. Mind or something. You’re always so concerned about me, but I’m fine. You don’t need to worry.” The Physician gave Rose a sad look like he knew something she didn’t.  
“Yeah, yeah. I guess you’re right,” the Physician admitted. “Is that a window? How?” The Physician reached towards his pocket instinctively. He pulled out a small silver wand like thing, and it started to buzz in an all too familiar way.  
“Is that a sonic screwdriver?” Rose asked.  
“Yeah. Er… you know, it was a gift.”  
“That’s so interesting. You know, the Doctor has a sonic screwdriver too. You guys really are the same person.”  
“Yeah. Heh-heh,” the Physician chuckled nervously.  
“Hi guys! What are you looking at? Is that a window? What’s a window doing here?” the Doctor asked as he walked over to the Physician and Rose.  
“I don’t know. I was wondering the same thing,” the Physician said. The Doctor stepped closer to the window for a closer look. He stared out the window in disbelief, his face marked with suspicion. Finally, whatever it was that was out the window seemed to get to him.  
“Oh my gods!” the Doctor gasped as he stumbled back from the window, clutching his chest.  
“Doctor! Are you okay?” Rose shrieked as she rushed to his side.  
“It’s… it’s… Gallifrey,” he said pointing towards the window.  
“What?!” the Physician practically screamed. “It can’t be. I thought it was frozen in time, unreachable and lost forever.” Rose immediately rushed to the window. She had always wanted to see where her Doctor was from.  
“I thought so too,” the Doctor said.  
“How do you know so much about Gallifrey?” Rose said, turning towards the Physician.  
“I… uh… studying. Remember? I was traveling and stuffing. In history, we discussed the TIme War.”  
“But as far as all the universes are concerned, Gallifrey doesn’t exist anymore,” the Doctor chimed in. As the Doctor and Rose looked on with curiosity and skepticism, the Physician began to blush madly. Who was this stranger that they had picked up on the streets of a carnival?  
“Spoilers,” the Physician said with a wink like it was an inside joke that only he knew. . The Doctor and Rose just looked at him in annoyed puzzlement. The Doctor was still looking at them as though he was the cat who ate the canary, immensely pleased with his little joke that no one but him seemed to get. “Well we can’t stand here all day. We’ve got a mystery to solve! Allows-y!” the Physician said, stealing the Doctor’s catchphrase.  
The Doctor and Rose gave each other a similarly confused look as if to say, “Did you understand that?” They followed behind the Physician with a feeling slight unrest, but they continued on. The tunnel ahead of them got darker, but that same jovial glint never left the Physician’s eyes.


	5. Chapter 5

The Doctor and Rose followed the mysterious Physician as he continued down the path ahead of them, although he was now jogging lightly as though he couldn’t wait to see what awaited the group at the end of this tunnel.

“Hey. Wait up!” Rose called out to the Physician, running to catch up to him and leaving the Doctor behind to inspect the world around them. He turned around slowly to look at Rose. 

“Sorry, sometimes I forget what it's like to have partners. I’ve been traveling alone for so long that it’s weird, almost unnerving, to have people helping me out again.” 

“Well, me and the Doctor here for you Physician. Who were you traveling with before you went off by yourself?

“A couple,” the Physician answered. “And it wasn’t my choice to leave.”

“What happened?”

“They wanted to start a life, a family. They travel was getting too dangerous. We decided to go out for a trip. It was to be safe, a sure thing, but it we ran into some unexpected trouble. There were some complications, and though I am sure they are out living their lives happily now, they are lost to me forever,” he finished with a sad look in his eyes. 

“I’m sorry,” Rose said.

“That’s okay. It’s in the past now.” The Physician looked at Rose the same way that he had looked when he had started talking about his past companions. Sad could not begin to describe the way that the Physician was looking at Rose. It was a mournful look. 

“Are you okay Physician? Is it something I said?”

“No,” the Physician said sheepishly. “You didn’t do anything. I’m sorry. It’s just that something about you reminds me of a different life, a life that could have been mine.”

 

“I take it that you don’t want to talk about it.”

“It’s fine. There was a girl, many years ago. We were together, but we were never really together. We didn’t realize that we were meant to be together until it was too late. She’s gone now. Off with another man. The worst part was that he was almost identical to me. It just makes me think that maybe that could have been me. It could have been my life if I hadn’t been so pigheaded and just told her how I felt when I had the chance. You are the spitting image of her, and she never knew when to walk away either.”

“What do you mean Physician?” Rose asked inquisitively.

“Look around. This entire investigation has been incredibly dangerous. You don’t even know what you are dealing with and yet you jump in blindly. She was the same way. She never thought of her own safety. She always cared more about the people around her and their well being instead of her own. She was the most wonderful person who only cared about helping others. She was exactly like you in every way, and I miss her every day.”

“How long has it been? I mean, you said a long time, and the way you speak, it sounds like you’ve changed a lot since then.”

“More than you know. Sometimes I wonder if it was truly for the better, but I have to tell myself that it is or else what was it all for?” 

“So a long time, huh?” Rose asked.

“Yeah.”

“And you’ve never tried to forget her?”

“More times than I can count.” 

“But I mean if it’s been so long and you’ve changed so much. How could you not have succeeded?”

“She left an indelible mark on me. I could never forget her.”

“Why even bother to remember though?”

“Remembering hurts but its all I have left of her.” 

“You’ve lost so many people. What made her so special?”

“You know, you ask a lot of questions,” the Physician said with a chuckle and the smallest of smiles. Even as sad as he was, somehow Rose had the ability to cheer him up at least a little bit. “She was my everything, my entire universe. I would have moved universes to be with her, but I would have hurt a lot of people. Letting her go was the hardest decision I ever had to make, and I relive it every day. You don’t forget that kind of love.” 

“I understand,” Rose said solemnly. “I used to know a man like that. I would have done anything for him, and he would have done the same for me. He changed though, and I’m quite sure yet if I like it. All I know is that the man I knew is gone and he’s never coming back. He can’t.”

“I know the feeling.” 

“It’s just that on the surface, this new guy seems tailor made for me, but what if when I look deeper, he’s not the same.” 

“I get the feeling that in time you will get used to it, and learn to love him the way that you loved the old him.” 

“You seem so sure. How do you know?” 

“Well, it’s like you said. All the changes seem tailor made to fit you. Don’t look a gift horse in the mouth. He’s still the same where it counts, isn’t he?”

 

“I guess.”

“If you feel this way, why don’t you just talk to him?”

“He’s not exactly one for talking about feelings, his or mine,” Rose sais. At this, the Physician laughed practically maniacally.

“Oh, and I am?”

“I can’t explain it. You’re just easy to talk to.”

“But I thought you said that I reminded you so much of your Doctor. Where’s the difference?”

“I can’t explain it.”

“Rose. Please take my advice. Talk to him.”

“I’ll try, but I’m not sure how well it will work out.”

“I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised.” 

“Do you know something I don’t?” Rose asked.

“Talk to him,” the Physician said before shutting up.

The pair lapsed into silence. They walked together as though they were living in their own little bubble, each thinking about their own tragedies. 

‘Hey!” the Doctor said cheerfully as he walked up beside them, interrupting their bubble of solemn tranquility. “You have got to see what I’ve found.”


	6. Chapter 6

What is it, Doctor?” Rose asked.

“Well, while you were talking with pretty boy over here-“

“Doctor!” Rose scolded him. 

“Well, it’s true!”

“You know, I seem to remember there being a pretty blonde thing that you got caught up with while I was trapped on a spaceship with clockwork aliens.”

“Um, I don’t mean to intrude,” the Physician said. “But could we maybe get back to discussing what it is that you found, Doctor?”

“Right! Of course! I was studying the environment around us while you two were talking, and I noticed something strange.”

“And?” Rose prompted.

“Well it’s just that the walls… well, they aren’t really walls. I mean, sure, they act as walls, but really they’re coded like a computer to act as walls.They’re more like solid holograms.” 

“Doctor, I just don’t understand why this is so strange. We’ve seen weirder,” Rose said.

“There’s more. I’ve seen this technology before, but it’s very rare, and it isn’t developed for several more centuries. Even then, it was halfway across the galaxy.There’s no way that it should be possible for technology this advanced to be on Poosh at this period in time. So, how’s it work? How’s it all fit together?”

“Why would someone do that though?” Rose asked. “Aren’t all these corridors counter effective? Wouldn’t it be better if the space was more open?”

“Oh, Rose Tyler! You are brilliant!,” the Doctor exclaimed.”The only reason that someone would clutter up all this space with this many tunnels is if they were trying to hide their intentions. An open work space would be much more productive than a closed off labyrinth. These tunnels are meant to further ward off any intruders in the hopes of getting them lost.”

“Is there any way that you could disable it? I mean, you could try to sonic it or something,” Rose suggested.

“I would need to find a control panel first.” 

“I might be able to help with that,” said the Physician as he walked up behind the pair.

“Oh, Physician! I didn’t realize that you had wandered off,” Rose asked.

“Yes. I walked a little further down this tunnel, and I noticed something. A small piece of the floor sounded hollow over there when I stepped on it. I tried to open it, but it’s sealed shut.”

“Well, you wouldn’t be able to get it open. You don’t have a sonic screwdriver.”

“Actually Doctor, he does,” Rose said.

“What? Where did you get it?” the Doctor said, sounding incredulous.

“It was a gift,” the Physician explains, saying the exact same thing he had said to Rose.

“Where is this section of floor?” the Doctor asked.

“It’s just over here, right past this little pile of dirt.”

“That’s not dirt,” the Doctor said.

“Well then, what is it?” asked Rose.” 

“I’m not sure,” the Doctor said as he began to point his sonic screwdriver at the mysterious substance. The sonic screwdriver finished it’s buzzing, and the Doctor studied it intensely.”It can’t be. There’s no way that this should be possible.” 

“What is it, Doctor?” Rose asked, looking up at him.

“It’s dirt.”

“So?” Rose said.

“This dirt is from Skaro,” the Doctor whispered as though he were afraid to say it. The Physician, who was standing behind the Doctor, turned white.

“The planet of the Daleks?” Rose queried.

“Yes” the Doctor confirmed with a solemn nod.

“The Daleks are here?” 

“There’s no way. They’ve all been extinguished.”

“Obviously not judging by the amount that we have had to deal with,” Rose reminded the Doctor.

“Even if Daleks were here, there’s no way that they would be working with the Cybermen,” the Physician interjected. “They would think of them as a lower life form.”

“Oh! So now you’re an expert on Daleks, are you?” the Doctor said sarcastically. “What next? Did you fight in the Time War? When in your life did you, whoever you are, ever encounter a Dalek? They’re not the same as you see in those little picture books that people like you call textbooks.”

“Doctor!” Rose exclaimed, taken aback by his abrupt outburst.

“I’m sorry. I was just trying to be helpful,” the Physician said sheepishly.

“Let’s just keep moving. Where was that hollow bit of floor that you were talking about?” the Doctor asked.

“Right over there,” the Physician said as he pointed to a patch of ground about to feet to their left. 

The Doctor immediately jumped up from where he had kneeling next to the small pile of Skaro dirt. He began to poke and prod at the suspected hatch. He briefly considered licking it before Rose caught on to what he was thinking of doing and yelled at him for even thinking of it.

“Maybe if we just pry it open. Does one of you have a crowbar or something on you person?”

“Yes, Doctor,” Rose said sarcastically. “Both the Physician and I are concealing crowbars somewhere on our bodies completely inconspicuously and you have not noticed.”

“Yeah you’re probably right. It doesn’t look as though you have a crowbar, unless you really are hiding one from me.” 

“Doctor,” Rose said in an exasperated voice. “Maybe you would like to get back to the problem at hand.” 

“I might have a suggestion,” the Physician offered up. “My sonic screwdriver can reformat itself to take the form of a small lever like object that I’m sure could be used as crowbar of sorts.”

“What? My sonic can’t do that? Seriously who gave yours to you?”

“A friend?”

“Ooh Mr. Fancy Pants Physician has a fancy pants friend who gives fancy pants sonic screwdrivers that are just a ripoff of mine,” the Doctor said in a mocking tone.

“Doctor!” What has gotten into you? You know, I don’t enjoy acting like I’m your mother or something. You need to apologize,” Rose censured him. The Doctor turned around looking thoroughly chastised.

“I’m sorry,” he muttered.

“It’s okay. I get a little jealous sometimes too,” the Physician admitted.

“Jealous?” the Doctor exclaimed looking aghast. “I am not jealous. What do I have to be jealous about?”

“My screwdriver, my chin, the way that Rose is looking at me rig-“

“Okay,” Rose said as she blushed furiously. “Why don’t we get back to the hatch. Physician? Can you open it or not?”

“I’ll try.” The Physician began to pick at the hatch, looking for an edge to he could use to pry the hatch open with his screwdriver. He found the edge he was looking for and began to work to force the hatch open. There was a click soon after and the Physician lifted up the hatch with a grunt to reveal the control panel underneath.

“Finally,” the Doctor muttered under his breath. 

He went to work, attempting to sonic the control panel. Soon, smoke started to come from the controls, and the Doctor’s arm began to shake as he fought to keep control of the sonic screwdriver.

“The controls are fighting back. It seems they have some sort of Artificial Intelligence that leads it to recognize sonic energy and formulate a way to combat it. It’s causing a malfunction and overheating,” the Doctor explained.

“It might work better if there were two people working together to sonic it. Would the AI be strong enough to fight that too?” Rose asked. “What would happen if you tried too, Physician?”

“I guess it couldn’t hurt,” the Physician said as he knelt down next to the Doctor and pulled out his sonic screwdriver as well. The sound of their combined buzzing soon filled the air. 

Shortly after that, Rose, who was looking over the both of their shoulders, saw the lights on the control panel begin to power down. Soon, they were all off, and the walls around them began to disappear until Rose could see that they were in a completely opened incredibly massive space. She couldn’t even see to the other side of the cavern. All that remained was a few scattered machines such as what they had seen in the room that they had found Xanthippe in and a wooden door about 20 feet behind them. It seemed that it would lead beyond the only real walls in the room.

“Doctor,” she said, pointing at the door. “What do you think is behind it.”

“I’m not sure, but whatever it is, we will find out soon,” he said before rushing off in the direction of the door.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this took so long to update. Thank y’all for being patient!

The Doctor and the Physician both rushed to the door as fast as they could with Rose trailing close behind. When they reached the door the Doctor tried to push it open but it wouldn’t budge. There was no lock as far as Rose could tell. Both the Doctor and the Physician stood still and stared at the door.

“Doctor, why don’t you just sonic it?” Rose asked.

“It doesn’t do wood!” the Doctor and the Physician said in unison. They all stood there staring intently at the door for a few more moments before Rose had an idea.

“Step aside boys. Let me show you how it’s done.” Rose said confidently as she stepped closer to the door. She reached into her back pocket and pulled out her wallet.

“Rose!” the Doctor exclaimed with an exasperated sigh. “You can’t just buy us entry. Your money’s no good here and who would take it anyway?”

“Relax Doctor. I have a plan. It’s something I learned from losing my keys a few too many times.” She pulled her debit card out of her wallet and wedged into the crack between the door and the wall. She wiggled it a few times before the telltale click of the lock unlocking echoed through the chamber.

“Oh, Rose Tyler, you are brilliant! Why I could practically kiss you right now,” the Doctor shouted excitedly before he realized what he had said and blushed a brilliant tomato shade. “I’m um… sorry. That was inappropriate,” he said sheepishly as he grasped the handle of the door knob. 

“It’s fine, Doctor,” Rose said.

The Doctor opened the door and stepped into the room awaiting them. Inside there were glass tanks everywhere. Inside, there were different species. Some that Rose recognized, and some that she didn’t. She saw Slitheen, Ood, and a creature that even slightly resembled the fleshy trampoline known as Cassandra, the last “pure human”. Rose heard the Doctor yelling about some creature across the room.

“Look! It’s a Peladonian! I haven’t seen one of these since my third regeneration!” he shouted.

“What is it? A zoo?” the Physician yelled from a different corner of the room.

“I’m not sure,” the Doctor said, sounding troubled.

“What is it, Doctor,” Rose asked.

“I think there’s something you should see,” the Doctor said, not giving anything away.

“How am I supposed to find you? This place is practically a maze,” Rose shouted.

“Follow my voice!” Rose listened for the Doctor as she made her way around the giant glass habitats. She walked through several rows before she finally found him. She saw him staring at what seemed to be an empty glass tank.

“What is it Doctor? It’s empty. What’s so strange about that?”

“Look at the plaque.” Rose’s eyes immediately linked to the label at the bottom of the tank. It read Time Lord of Gallifrey. A wave of emotions washed over Rose as she stared at the plaque. This couldn’t be meant for her Doctor, could it? Why would anybody want to put him in a glass tank? Think back on that, Rose revised her question. Why wouldn’t anybody want to put the Doctor in a glass tank? While she was lost in thought,the PHysician finally found them.

“What did I miss?” he asked as he rounded the corner. 

“We need to get out of here,” the Doctor said softly but solemnly.

“What?” the Physician asked, looking deeply puzzled. Suddenly, the sound of a mechanical whirring cut through the air.

“Who’s here,” demanded several electronic voices in unison. “Prepare to be upgraded.”

“Correction,” Rose said softly. “We need to get the hell out of here!”

“Cybermen,” the Physician muttered in a dark manner. 

“Run,” the Doctor whispered before he grabbed Rose’s hand and sprinted as fast as he could for the door through which they had some. Rose’s heart began to beat fast and hard in her chest and not just because of the running. The Physician was following close behind them. 

“Prepare to be upgraded!” she heard from somewhere off to the left of them. 

“Quickly!” the Doctor said as he began to drag her at an even faster pace. He ducked down the next row they came to hoping to avoid the Cybermen. When they reached the end of that one, they immediately turned down another one. Rose figured that the least direct path would be the best way to shake the Cybermen. As the three of them were looking down at the ground, trying not to trip over anything, Rose heard the telltale clanking of all Cybermen. It was getting closer and closer. Although, it still sounded as though they were a few rows away.

“Prepare to be upgraded,” Rose heard, much closer this time. The Doctor stopped suddenly in front of her. Rose was scared to look up and doubly scared of what she expected to see when she did. She slowly lifted her head, and a chill of terror shot through her veins like ice. Four Cybermen stood before her.

“Prepare to be upgraded!” they shouted together victoriously.

“Doctor? What should we do?” Rose whispered to him, still gripping his hand firmly. He was still standing his ground and glaring at the Cybermen before him.

“You can’t run!” the Cybermen taunted.

“You’re coming with us,” the Cyberman in the front of the pack ordered.

“Doctor?” Rose asked waiting to hear his brilliant plan.

“It’ll be okay, Rose. I promise,” he whispered softly, before turning to the Cybermen. “I don’t know who you think you are, but just for you information, I am a Time Lord. I fought in the Time War.” If Cybermen could tremble, than these Cybermen were quaking in their boots. “Ooh yeah! That scares you, doesn’t it?” he taunted. 

“There are more of us and we’ve called for reinforcements. You are no match for us Time Lord,” the Cyberman who seemed to be in charge said.

From behind her, Rose heard a distinct buzzing sound. She had forgotten all about the Physician. He had pulled out his sonic screwdriver and was now pointing it at the Cybermen but to no avail.

“We have upgraded. The new and improved Cybermen are now sonic resistant,” he explained.

“What are you going to do, Doctor?” Rose asked.

“I have a plan,” he said assertively. “My friends are not apart of this. Let them go. It’s me you want, I saw the plaque. Take me and let them go!”

“Doctor, no!” Rose exclaimed.

“Why would we do that?” the Cyberman asked.

“Because you’re smart and you don’t want to die today,” he reasoned.

“Prepare to be upgraded!” all the Cybermen said in unison signaling that they agreed to the Doctor’s terms.

“At least let me say goodbye first,” he pleaded. Then he turned to Rose. “I’m sorry.”

“Doctor, you can’t!”

“Rose, please. You are going to be okay. Take the Physician and get out of here. You have the TARDIS key. Get her to take you home,” the Doctor said solemnly. The Physician watched in silence.

“But Doctor, what about you?”

“I made a promise to your mother. I will do whatever it takes to keep you safe.”

“I’m not leaving you,” she said firmly. “I promised you that I would stay with you forever.”

“It’s been great.”

“Doctor…” Rose said as she reached up to rest her hand on his cheek. She could hear the sounds of the Cybermen closing the distance between them. They were coming to collect their prize.

“Rose Tyler, you were brilliant,” the Doctor said before sadly pressing a kiss to her cheek.

The Cybermen came, grabbed his arms, and began to lead him away like a prisoner to a guillotine. 

“Noooooooo,” Rose wailed. The Physician moved to hold her as she sunk to ground, tears slipping down her face. “Goodbye, Doctor,” she whispered as he disappeared around a corner.


	8. Chapter 8

Two Cybermen remained at the end of the row as Rose sobbed like mad. After what felt like an eternity, but was actually only a matter of seconds, the Cybermen nodded their heads as though they were receiving orders. Then, the two of them began to march towards the Physician and Rose.

“Rose?” the Physician said as he shook Rose gently. “Rose, we need to get out of here.” He pulled to her feet and began to lead her away from the Cyberman.

“Prepare to be upgraded!” the Cybermen shouted as they began to have after them.

“Rose! Please!” The Physician was pulling her behind him as he ran now. 

“Yeah,” she said softly as she too began to run. 

The Cybermen pursued the two of them relentlessly as they ran down aisle after aisle. 

“Do you remember where the door is?” the Physician asked Rose.

“This way,” she shouted as she took the lead and dragged him down an aisle to their left.

“The Cybermen were right behind them when the Physician tripped over his feet.

‘Dammit!” Rose thought. He was like a puppy whose paws were too big for his body. She scrambled to help him to his fee, but she wasn’t quick enough. One of the Cybermen’s cold metal “hands” calmed around her arm and began to drag her way.

“What?!” she shouted as the other Cyberman grabbed the Physician. “I thought we had a deal. He gave himself up. You have him. You promised to let us go.”

“Our orders have changed,” the Cyberman holding her answered. We will take you back to our leaders, where you will be upgraded.” 

“Physician!” Rose shouted. “Use your sonic screwdriver!”

“I can’t reach it, and besides it's not like it would work anyway.”

“What are we gonna do?

“Just let them take you Rose. Hopefully, we’ll be reunited with the Doctor! He'll have a plan.”

Rose stopped resisting the Cyberman and went with it as it led her off to God knows where. The other Cyberman grabbed the Physician and began to follow closely behind them. They marched down several rows before they reached another door. It was different than the one that they had come though. It was larger and metal with several more locks than the previous one. The Cyberman began to unlock the door using keys that seemed to spring from its claws. 

When the door opened, they entered what looked like some sort of throne room. Many Cybermen stood at attention along the walls, while one Cyberman sat in a twisted metal chair on a dais in the center of the room, right under a ginormous chandelier. Rose was so fascinated by this that she almost missed what was sitting next to the dais. 

There was the Doctor. He was strapped to a dolly like the kind that you would see in a warehouse, and he was gage.

“Doctor!” Rose cried. “Are you okay?” The Doctor shrugged as though he was saying that he wasn’t scared at the thought of being held captive by Cybermen. To be quite honest, his expression was bored like he couldn’t have cared less about what was happening. Several Cybermen around the room seemed to bristle at the sight of his calm demeanor and casual shrug.

“How dare you?” the Cyberman seated on the throne thundered. “You do not speak!”

“Excuse me?” Rose shrieked as she began to let loose. “Who do you think you are? You can’t tell me what to do!” You’ve taken me and my friends as prisoners and you’ll pay for that! I guarantee it!”

Behind Rose, the Physician began to shake his head and chuckle quietly before she rounded on him.

“Oi! You think this is funny, do you? It was your idea to go with the Cybermen and find the Doctor. Well, here we are. What now?”

“Shut her up!” the Cyberman shouted.

“Yet again, who are you?”

“I am Cyberman Supreme. I have been upgraded to the highest level.”

‘Oh yeah! You’re real special. What a great big steaming hunk of metal, straight from the depths of the biggest dumpster fire,” Rose spat sarcastically. Next to the dais, she could see the Doctor laughing harder than she had ever seen him laugh before.

“What would you know? You’re just a human,” it retorted.

“Up yours, mate! At least humans aren’t all some hive minded collective.”

At this point, a couple of Cybermen began to advance on Rose. They gagged her and dragged her into a corner. A few moments later, the Physician joined her in the corner, where they were both tied to chairs.

“That was brilliant!” the Physician, who the Cybermen had not felt the need to gag, exclaimed. He began to attempt to help Rose work the gag off her mouth you rubbing his shoulder against the side of her face. Finally, the gag slipped off her face and down to her neck. 

“Physician,” she whispered. “I’m going to try to untie you, so that you can reach your sonic screwdriver. Then you need to untie me.”

“But it won’t work. The Cybermen are sonic resistant.”

“I want you to sonic the chain that holds up the chandelier. It will fall, causing enough commotion so that I can run forward and grab the Doctor, and then we can make our way out of here.”

“And what if the Doctor gets hit by the chandelier?”

“He’s even hit harder. Hell, he’s been hit harder by me,” Rose replied. The Physician grimaced as though recalling something unpleasant.

“Inspired!” the Physician gushed. Rose blushed profusely.

“She began to work to untie the Physician, and soon, his ropes were on the floor. Hers followed shortly after. The Physician stealthily reached for his sonic screwdriver and drew it out of his pocket slowly. The familiar buzzing of a sonic screwdriver soon echoed in the room.

“You!” Cyberman Supreme shouted as he turned to the Doctor. “ What is that noise? I thought we confiscated your sonic screwdriver!” The Doctor shrugged before throwing a wink in Rose’s direction. The chandelier began to shake above them.

CRASH!

The chandelier came rushing down and landed squarely on top of the throne, effectively rendering Cyberman Supreme useless. The Doctor managed to roll the dolly away from the crash and avoided any harm. Rose ran toward him and started to untie him.

“Doctor! Doctor, are you okay?”

“A great big steaming hunk of metal straight from the depths of the biggest dumpster fire, huh?” he said with a chuckle. 

“Come on. Let’s get out of here!” Rose said as she grabbed his hand and they started to run from the danger behind them hand in hand.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey y’all. I want y’all to know that I have been writing a lot lately. The majority of it has been the Doctor and Rose. I have several one shots that should be ready soon. I’ve also been working to write longer chapter for this fic, and I have started a couple of other multi chapter fics and some other stuff that I am really excited for y’all to see. Unfortunately, all of this writing has taken a toll on me. I have carpal tunnel and/or tendinitis in my wrist. I have a really big swim meet coming up as well as soccer camp and tryouts. I have started to feel the effects impacting my performance in sports and my volunteering as a counselor at art camp for kids, and I will have to take a step back from writing for a little while. I will try to continue to post on time. But I can’t make any promises right now. I’m so sorry. :(


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey y’all. I’m back. I’m sorry that I’ve been gone for so long. I’ve been writing like crazy and I finished up the story about 5 minutes ago. From here until the end of the story, I will be posting every day because you guys deserve it for being so patient and sticking with me through this. Y’all are the best.

Rose and the Doctor continue to run as fast as they could for the door that was maybe 20 meters behind the throne. They had just reached the door when Rose turned to the Doctor with a look of horror etched onto her face. 

“The Physician!” she gasped.

“Bollocks! Look, you go through this door. I’ll get the Physician, and we’ll meet you on the other side.”

“But Doctor-“

“Rose,” the Doctor said with an exasperated sigh as he cut Rose of. “We don’t have  
time for this argument ri-“

“The door is locked.”

“Oh! Right, about that,” the Doctor said, pulling out his sonic. He unlocked the door and practically shoved Rose through it. “I’ll be right back.” 

Rose closed the door behind her and rested her back against it for a couple of moments. Every time the Doctor sis something this foolishly bare and heroic, she worried about him. She knew that he had promised her that he would be right back, but you can’t always trust a reckless man to make the right decisions in regard for his safety.

Rose was all too familiar with that sentiment. She had seen the same side of the Doctor when he had plunged into a pit in the middle of that black hole planet, and when he had sent her and the TARDIS back to Earth while he stayed to fight on Satellite 5. God, he could be such an idiot sometimes. 

To be fair, the same could be said for her too. There was the time that she had harnessed the Time Vortex to get back to Satellite 5, and when she had decided to grant a Dalek mercy though she probably shouldn’t have. Her and the Doctor made quite the pair together. Truly, it was a miracle that she wasn’t already dead, and that the Doctor hadn’t burned through the rest of his regenerations.

Rose decided to stop worrying about the Doctor. He was a big Time Lord. He could take care of himself… for the most part. She focused her entries on the room around her inside, not that there was much to look at. 

It was a small cylindrical chamber with dirt walls. It was certainly a change of pace from the modern stainless steel room that they had just been in. There was nothing else in the room. At the other side there was yet another door. Rose didn’t mind that though. It meant that she was alone and being alone meant that she was safe, for now. 

A few moments later, she heard a knock on the door. Rose jumped, startled by the noise. Without waiting for Rose to let him in, the Doctor barged in, dragging the Physician with him. He turned to the door and door and used his sonic on it.

“There! That should keep the rest of the Cybermen from getting in,” he said before he set the Physician down and looked at him with frustration in his eyes. 

“Doctor, what happened?” Rose asked.

“I’m not sure. I think he might have been hit by one of the Cybermen’s rays.”

“What are we going to do?”

“I’m going to try to use my sonic and whatever I have in my pockets to heal him. It’s probably going to take a couple of hours,” the Doctor said as he shifted his gaze to Rose. “Try to get some sleep. You look terrible.”

“Oi!”

“I mean that you look tired. Seriously, take a quick kip.”

“Fine,” Rose sighed as he she laid down on the stone floor and used her jacket as a makeshift pillow. She closed her eyes and within seconds she was asleep.

…

Rose awoke hours later to a strange moaning noise. The room was dark, and Rose struggled to see anything before her eyes began to adjust.

“Doctor?” she called out into the blackness.

“Rose! You’re up!” he shouted back cheerfully.

“Very observant,” Rose mumbled under her breath before she said. “Doctor, where are you?”

“Oh, right! Sorry,” the Doctor said as he turned on his sonic screwdriver to provide a little illumination. Rose could now see that the Doctor was sitting on the look about 20 feet away from her. She to up and move to sit next to him.

“Where’s the Physician, and what’s that noise?” The Doctor pointed his sonic screwdriver to his left in answer to Rose’s question, where she could see that the Physician was crumpled in a heap on the floor 10 feet away from them. “Is he okay?”

“He’ll be fine,” the Doctor answered with a shrug. Something about his tone bothered Rose.

“Doctor, what aren’t you telling me?”

“He wasn’t hit by a ray. He sprained his ankle while running. I had an ice pack and some medical tape in my bag.”

“So why is he moaning?”

“He tried to start a conversation,” the Doctor answered in a nonchalant tone.

“And?” Rose prompted. 

“I didn’t feel much like talking.”

“How did he end up on the floor moaning?”

“Well, you know that pesky ankle that I mentioned.”

“Yes?” Rose said, starting to get worried.

I kicked him in it.”

“Doctor! You can't just go around kicking people when you don’t feel like talking. It’s a miracle that you haven’t even banned from every planet across every galaxy and dimension known to man and every other species for that matter.”

“He deserved it,” the Doctor reasoned as he put his hands up in a defensive gesture.

“Could I chime in for a moment?” the Physician asked in a strained voice.

“Oh! Sorry, I forgot you were even here,” Rose said. “Of course. Please give us your side of the story.”

“The Doctor is right. I said some things that I shouldn’t have, and maybe I pushed a little too hard, but he still shouldn’t have kicked me.”

“What did he ask that could be so bad?” Rose asked as she turned to face the Doctor again.

“I don’t think we need to relive that again,” the Doctor said. “I might end up kicking him again.”

“Doctor,” Rose warned him as she put a hand on his shoulder in an effort to sooth him.

“He’s right,” the Physician agreed. “It’s not worth bringing it up again.”

“Are you two keeping secrets from me now?” Rose asked. Her question was met with nothing but silence. “Well, are you?” There was only more silence. “Doctor?” she asked, rounding on him. 

The Doctor blushed and began to stammer as the Physician began to frantically motion at him behind Rose’s back.

“I… er… No? Yes! Maybe?”

“Oh my god! You are keeping something from me! I can’t believe you two! So what is it? Spill!”

“No!” the Physician and the Doctor shouted at the same time.

“I can’t believe you two! I need some time to myself. Where’s the door?” Rose asked.

“Rose, you really shou-“ the Doctor said before Rose cut him off.

“I don’t really care what you think I should or shouldn’t do right now. I’ll find the door myself.”

Before long, Rose had located the door and was picking the lock. The door opened and she hurried through it eager to escape the Doctor and the Physician.

“Should we go after her?” the Physician asked.

“No. She’ll be fine. Rose has never met a monster-“

He was cut off by a scream.

“Rose!” the Doctor and the Physician said in unison before racing for the door.


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey y’all. So tomorrow I will be posting the last chapter of this fic, and I’m super excited. I have had so much fun writing this and all of y’all have been the most supportive fans I could ever hope for.

The Doctor hurried toward the door with the Physician following closely behind him. Luckily, Rose had been too distraught to lock the door behind her. 

Seconds later, the Doctor burst through the door after having successfully shouldered it open before he stopped in his tracks.

Standing before him was his oldest enemy, the one creature in all the universe that he hated more than himself, a Dalek. He looked around frantically for Rose, but couldn’t find her. It was like she had disappeared. 

“Where is Rose?” he roared. “And what the hell is going on here?”

“Why are Cybermen running around this place and what was that room with the tanks back there for?

“Ah, the Doctor! We’ve been waiting for you, and who is your friend?” it said in its mechanical voice.

“I’m the Physician.”

“Well, Physician, as for the room with the tanks, the Cybermen believe that I that it’s something of a holding cell. They want to see how many species they can upgrade.”

“And as for you?”

“We like to think of it as a zoo of sorts. We are the superior species to everyone.”

“How many of them are you?” the Doctor demanded.

“Enough,” the Dalek cackled, or as close to cackling as a Dalek could get.

“How many?” the Doctor asked again in a dangerously quiet voice.

“Ten,” the Dalek answered.

“So this will be easy then,” the Physician said with a laugh.

“Who do you think you are to trifle with a Dalek?” it asked.

“Nobody special. It’s just that I’ve met a few of your kind in the past, and as you can see I’m not fazed by the idea of running into a few more.”

The Doctor gawked at the Physician. When would he have met Daleks? Who was he?

“Now, where are you keeping Rose?” the Physician asked.

“She has four Daleks guarding her, and they won’t hesitate. She’s not going anywhere,” the Dalek said.

“And who’s guarding you?” the Physician asked as he pulled out his sonic screwdriver.

“Exterminate,” the Dalek said as it truly came to life. It began to flash and readied itself to fire.

“I don’t think so,” the Doctor chimed in as he too drew his screwdriver.

The Dalek began to fire, first at the Physician, then at the Doctor. It missed both times. The Doctor and the Physician regrouped and both of them fired their sonics at the Dalek. It began to scream in pain, but the neither the Doctor nor the Physician felt any pity. Daleks didn’t deserve it.

When the both of them were sure that the Dalek was truly dead,they dropped their sonic screwdrivers. The Doctor took the time to survey the room around them. The entire room seemed to be some sort of cave as though it was carved straight into the side of a mountain. The only exception to this theory were the sheets of bronze that covered the floor. Industrial looking light fixtures hung from the ceiling. There were no other doors to be seen aside from the one that they had just come through. The room was empty other than a small wooden chair in the corner.

“Where do you think that they could have taken Rose?” the Physician asked.

“I don’t know,” the Doctor mumbled.

“There has to be some way to get out of here other than the door that we came in through.” 

“Yeah, thanks for that brilliant observation, Captain Obvious,” the Doctor said sarcastically.

“Alright then,” the Physician began, choosing to ignore the Doctor’s sarcasm, “What looks out of place?”

“I don’t kn- wait… Daleks can’t sit.”

“So?” the Physician asked. He hadn’t caught on to where the Doctor was going with his observation.

“So what is a chair doing here, you idiot?” 

“You know, I thought we were friends now. Buddies! Mates! We killed a Dalek together.”

“The chair, Physician,” the Doctor said, growing impatient.

“Right yes. Let’s go check out that chair!” The pair ran over to the chair. “Not to risk pissing you off by asking another obvious question or anything, but if Daleks can’t sit than how could they use the chair to trigger anything?”

“I’m working on it,” the Doctor mumbled in a frustrated tone. “What if the Dlaeks aren’t meant to sit in this chair? What if all that this chair leads to is a jail of some sort? What if the Daleks aren’t meant to trigger it? What if the prisoner is?”

“That’s brilliant! Sit in it!”

“Why shouldn’t you be the one to sit in it?”

“Because it was your idea!” the Physician argued.

“Are we going to stand here arguing while Rose is potentially in danger or are you going to sit in the damn chair?” the Doctor countered.

“Fine,” the Physician huffed angrily sat on the chair. 

Immediately, both the Physician and the Doctor were whisked backwards through an opening that had appeared in the wall. Soon, they jolted to a stop and the hole in the wall abruptly closed. Both of them turned around only to realize that they were face to face with four angry Daleks and one extremely angry Rose. 

“Doctor! Physician!” she breathed out almost like a sigh.

“Rose don’t worry. You’re safe now,” the Physician called out to her.

“Oh, I’m not worried about me. I’m worried about the well-being of these Daleks if any one of them threatens to kill me one more time!”

“I’d forgotten how independent you were,” the Physician said as he smiled wistfully.

The Doctor hated the Physician when he said that. It was a sudden burst of uncontrollable anger. How could you forget how independent someone was after just 20 minutes apart from them. Why was the Physician acting like he knew Rose, and like he wasn’t just a passing acquaintance that they met on their travels. The Doctor held onto that thought, that in week, the Physician would be gone and theirs would all be nothing but a bad memory. Him and Rose would be another own again. The thought comforted it he didn’t quite know why. All he knew was that he had to stop whatever was happening right now between the Physician and Rose. 

“If I might chime in,” the Doctor began ever so politely. “It seemed we have more important things to deal with than the two of you making goo-goo eyes at each other.”

“Doctor!” Rose shouted at him. “Shut up and just get me out of here!” 

As soon as Rose said that, the Doctor drew his sonic screwdriver and began to fire it at the Dalek closest to him. The Physician joined in, and before the other Daleks even had the chance to react the first of the four of them of them was dead.

Soon, however, the Daleks had recovered and began to fire rapidly. Rose was safe behind the line of fire, but she was getting really worried. If the Daleks kept firing like this eventually they were bound to hit something or someone. 

Then, Rose had an idea, possibly the stupidest idea she had ever had in her entire life, but it was an idea. The Doctor would kill her for it if she lived, but Rose was Rose, and she would do anything to save the Doctor. She leaped madly at the nearest Dalek landing squarely on its back as she wrapped her arms around the laser shooting limb and attempted to wrench it off. She gripped on for dear life and pulled with all her might. The Dalek started to spin wildly and shoot in scattered directions. She closed her eyes and the Doctor’s face flashed against the backs of her eyelids. Rose felt a sudden burst of almost inhuman strength and ripped the metal appendage from the Dalek. Two down. Two to go.

Rose looked up, her face flushed with triumph. She began to run to the Doctor, and he stopped what he was doing to look at her with equal parts awe and rage. He only dropped his guard for half a second, and that’s when it happened. The Doctor had been hit.


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey y’all. So this is it, the last chapter. I’ve hope y’all enjoy it.

Rose rushed toward the Doctor as fast as she could and dropped to her knees beside him. She saw the Physician go pale in the corner of her eye, but she couldn’t bring herself to shift her gaze away from the Doctor. She spent what felt like an eternity staring at the Doctor’s body as it lay on the ground though in truth it was only a second. She had to do something.

“Physician!” Rose yelled as loud as she could to get his attention. “You need to do what you can to help the Doctor. I’ll take care of the remaining two Daleks.” She turned towards the Daleks and began to shout again as she heard the Physician using his sonic on the Doctor in the background. “You don’t know what you’re dealing with. If you want to make it out of here alive today, I suggest that you don’t attack me or my friends any longer!”

“Who do you think you are? What’s the might of a human versus that of a Dalek?” one of the remaining two Daleks replied. 

“I’m not just a human. I’m Bad Wolf.” If Daleks could quiver, then these two would be shaking in their boots when Rose said that. “These two are under my protection,” she continued. “Now, are we going to have a problem.”

“Exterminate!” the Daleks said in unison.

“I’m offering you a chance, you know. It’s now or never!”

“Daleks don’t surrender!”

“So be it,” Rose said calmly. Her eyes began to glow with a golden light.

The Physician looked up in awe and bewilderment. How was this happening. This shouldn’t be possible. A pulse of light emanated from Rose. The Daleks before them went dark.

“Rose?” the Physician asked quietly.

“I couldn’t bear to kill them. They’re unconscious, and they’ll stay that way for at least a week. Think of it as something of a coma. How is he?”

“He’ll be fine, but he’s going to be in a lot of pain for a while. We need to find a way out of here.”

“The Doctor’s unconscious,” Rose sighed. “That’s going to make getting out of here a little difficult.”

“Do you want to sit for a while, wait for the Doctor to wake up? You could sleep,” the Physician suggested.

“I’m fine.”

“What was that light?” 

“It’s this thing. Bad Wolf, it’s called.”

“And?”

“And I haven’t even had this conversation with the Doctor yet. I’d prefer not to have it with you right now.”

“I’m sorry,” the Physician backtracked. “It’s just that I earlier you said that I was uh… easy to talk to, you know? I thought you might need a friend right now.”

“Yeah. You’re right. I shouldn’t have snapped at you like that. I’d really love to talk to you about it.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah,” Rose said with her signature tongue in tooth grin. “Um, it all started when the Doctor made yet another stupid decision.He left me on Earth to go fight countless Daleks on some space station.”

“Let’s not judge the Doctor too harshly.”

“Are you kidding me?” Rose chuckled. “All you’ve done since the two of you have met was insult each other, and now you’re defending him. What is going on here?”

“Let’s get back to the story,” he Physician said hurriedly.

“Well, I couldn’t leave him to fend for himself, so obviously I had to do something. And… well… I may have absorbed the Time Vortex from the TARDIS, and become something of a goddess called Bad Wolf. Then, I committed mass Dalek genocide, and I also scattered those words across the universe as some sort of scvenger hunt or something, but retaining that sort of energy would have killed me, so the Doctor removed all of the Time Vortex, or so he thought.”

“But he didn’t?” asked the Physician, looking incredulous.

“I guess not. It started with just little things. They were barely noticeable, like I was brushing my teeth one morning, and I saw my eyes flash gold in the mirror, and I could’ve sworn that it was just a trick of the light, but then it happened again two weeks later,” Rose confessed.

“And the Doctor doesn’t know anything? If it’s as dangerous as you say, don't you think that you should tell him?”

“I can’t. He’ll overreact, and whenever that happens he withdraws for days and won't speak to anyone but the TARDIS. I hate it when he does that, and I hate it even more when it’s my fault.”

“You should talk to him about that too. I’m sure he doesn’t mean to hurt you like that. He doesn’t mean to hurt you.”

“You talk like you're inside his head or something.”

“You would be surprised how alike we are,” the Physician admitted. 

“I’m actually feeling kind of tired. I guess playing at being Bad Wolf really takes it out of me. Wake me when the Doctor’s up.”

“Sure. I know it’s been a long day for you. Take my jacket,” the Physician offered as he draped it over her. “Sleep well.”

“Thanks,” Rose said as she settled down to sleep. 

…

A couple of hours later, someone was shaking Rose’s shoulder gently.

“Physician?” she asked groggily.

“No, Rose. It’s me,”

“Doctor?” Rose said as she opened her eyes and bolted upright.

“Yeah,” he answered. “The Physician and I thought that it was time that we go on our way.”

“Did you two talk for long?”

“No, I’ve only been awake for a couple of minutes?”

“Good,” Rose sighed.

“Why don’t you want me to talk to the Physician?”

“Oh! It’s just that uh… I didn’t think that I could stand any more screaming matches.”

“Oh. Right. That makes sense.”

“Are you ready to go?” 

“Yeah,” the Doctor said offering her his hand and pulling Rose to her feet.

“Where’s the Physician?” 

“He already went ahead. I believe he’s waiting for us in the main room.”

“Okay”

“And that reminds me I need to talk to you,” the Doctor began. Rose’s heart began to hammer in her chest. This couldn’t be about Bad Wolf, could it? The Physician wouldn’t have ratted her out like that. “What have I told you about Daleks?”

“That they’re pure evil, Doctor,”

“Then why were they still alive, albeit asleep, when I woke up? You should have insisted that the Physician kill them!” Rose breathed out a sigh of relief. The Physician had taken the fall for the Daleks.

“Yeah,” she agreed weakly. “Sorry about that.”

The Doctor located some sort of button on the wall. When he pushed it, the hole in the wall open up, but this time the chair stayed where it was. They walked through it and continued on their way to find the Physician.

…

They eventually reached the large room where the Doctor and Physician had originally disabled the walls.

“I had a thought,” the Physician said when they reached him in lieu of a greeting. 

“That’s new. Did it hurt?” the Doctor asked sarcastically. 

“What have I told you about manners Doctor?” Rose asked as she elbowed him in the ribs.

“Use them.”

“Can we get back to what I was saying?” the Physician asked impatiently.

“Absolutely,” Rose said cheerfully.

“Well as I was saying, before I was so rudely interrupted, I had an idea. Since we’re in a dimensional pocket, I thought that maybe we could disable it. Then we won’t have to wander through about a gazillion more corridors to get out, and if we close the dimensional pocket, then we can rule out the possibility of anybody else getting hurt.”

“That’s brilliant, Physician.”

“And mad,” the Doctor added.

“Why?” Rose asked.

“To close a dimensional pocket, it would take an incredible amount of power, especially since we weren’t the ones to open it,” the Doctor explained.

“And while it would be hard, but I think that we could do it. We have the power of two sonic screwdrivers,” the Physician said hopefully.

“We still don’t have a chance.”

“Um… Doctor, you may have a little more than just two sonic screwdrivers,” Rose chimed in.

“Rose, you don’t have to do th-“ the Physician argued before Rose cut him off.

“Yes I do. If that’s what it will take to keep the people of this planet safe, then I’ll do it. Doctor, when you removed the Time Vortex from me, I think some residual energy remained. A piece of Bad Wolf still lives inside of me, and I know that you’re angry, but we can either talk about it right now or wean do what needs to be done and get of here.” The Doctor stood where he was, completely silent and unmoving. “Doctor? Please say something.”

“Fine,” he huffed.

“Fine?” Rose asked incredulous that he wasn’t fighting back. This wasn’t the Doctor that she knew.

“Fine,” he repeated. “But we will discuss this later.”

“Good,” Rose said pleased with herself. “Let’s not waste any more time then, boys.”

The Doctor and the Physician pulled out their sonic screwdrivers. Rose placed a hand on each of their shoulders and summoned the Bad Wolf inside of her. She focused the energy into the boys and in turn their screwdrivers. The using noise intensified, and filled the room with its echo. The room around them began to deteriorate. The walls came crumbling down around them. Soon all that was left was a field and some dazed and confused construction workers wondering what the hell had just happened. 

The Doctor and the Physician dropped their screwdrivers just in time to catch Rose as she sank to the ground. 

“Rose? Rose? Are you okay?” the Doctor asked panicked.

“Yeah,” she said weakly. “I’m fine, just a little tired. That’s all. We did it!”

“Yeah we did,” the Doctor said, smiling down at her as he cradled her in his arms. “But we need to get you back to the TARDIS.”

The three of them began to walk down the street to where the Doctor had parked the TARDIS. It was in a small grove of trees just off the main drag. Soon, they reached the woods and Rose turned to look at the Physician.

“I guess this is where we say goodbye,”she said as her eyes began to water.

“Hey, don’t cry,” the Physician said as he reached to wipe away a few stray tears that were rolling down her cheeks.

“I’m sorry,” Rose said as she wrapped her arms around him tightly. “It’s just that I feel like I’ve gotten so close to you even though I haven’t known you for very long.”

“I feel the same way. Is there any chance that we could have a moment alone?” he asked, turning to the Doctor.

“Yeah. Sure. I’ll go make sure the infirmary is set up,” the Doctor said, before hurrying away to the TARDIS.

“I want you to know that you are one of the bravest, most headstrong, beautiful girls I have ever met. You had one of the biggest hearts out there and also one of the rarest. I will treasure every moment that I have ever spent with you.”

“Thank you.” Rose said as she hugged him even tighter.

“I’m really going to miss you, Rose Tyler.”

“I’m gonna miss you too… Doctor.”

“What?” the Physician asked taken aback.

“I know that it’s you.”

“But how?”

“I’d suspected for a while, but I didn’t really know until you said my name just now. Only the Doctor says my name like that. If he’s Ten, what are you?”

“Eleven,” the Physician confessed.

“And what happens to me?”

“I can’t. Spoilers.”

“Please. Tell me something, anything. I need to know,” Roes pleaded.

“You’re happy.” 

“How does the Doctor not know that it’s you… or uh him, or…”

“I have DNA scrambler on. My DNA is not Time Lord, but not anything else either. That way I still have my sense of self and don't have to answer any awkward questions.”

“And how have you not torn a hole in the time space continuum. A paradox this large should have ripped the fabric of the universe apart entirely.”

“With my DNA scrambled. I’m not technically the Doctor. Therefore I can’t create a paradox, and I haven’t told you any information that I believe could be dangerous.”

“Well, I should go now. I’ll send the Doctor out here to say goodbye.”

“Oh really, you don’t have to. I don't think it's a good idea,” the Physician protested.

“Truthfully, neither do I, but anything that I can do to stall the no doubt more than thorough exam he plans to give me.”

“Fine. I’ll talk to him. I never could say no to you.”

“Glad to know that the little things never change,” Rose said with a smaller as she began to walk away.

“You wanted to speak to me?” the Doctor asked as he stuck his head out the door of the TARDIS tentatively. 

“Yeah. I wanted to say goodbye.” 

“Well, goodbye then.”

“And I think you should tell her.”

“I’m sorry, what?” the Doctor asked as he took a temp forward and let the TARDIS door close fully behind him. 

“Tell Rose you love her.”

“Where do you get off?”

“I know you’re afraid of losing her, but you know that what happened today changes everything. With Bad Wolf in her, she will have longer with you, if not forever. Tell her.”

“She doesn’t feel the same way.”

“God, you’re thick. She loves you more than you know, you idiot. I see the way she looks at you when she thinks you’re not looking. All you have to do is tell her.”

“I’ll take it under consideration,” the Doctor said in an icy tone.

“It was nice getting to know you,” the Physician said. “I feel like I’ve gained a new perspective on life. It’s like I’m a new person.”

“Bully for you.”

“Goodbye, Doctor.”

“Goodbye, Physician.”

The Doctor turned to reenter the TARDIS. When he opened the door, the first thing he saw was Rose leaning against the console waiting for him.

“So…” she started awkwardly.

“So… Bad Wolf?”

“Yeah, about that. I’m really sorry I didn’t tell you, but I’ll let you give me an exam, but I have a condition.”

“No.”

“You haven’t even heard me out yet!” 

“Whatever it is, the answer is no.”

“If Bad Wolf is not threatening my life, then I want to leave whatever remains inside of me.”

“Absolutely not.”

“Doctor please.” 

“No,” the Doctor stated firmly.

“Bad Wolf makes me feel powerful. Is it really so much to ask to keep what’s let. It’s a part of me, and I’m not ready to just cut it out of me.”

“Fine.”

…

The Doctor had ended his examination of Rose. She sat up on the exam table and looked at him. He was uncharacteristically silent.

“Well?” she asked.

“Bad Wolf can stay.”

“Yes!” Rose cried as she leaped up to give him a hug.

“I actually have something else to talk to you about.”

“Oh?” Rose said as she sat back down on the exam table.

“Yes. Er… I do have something to say and it’s rather important, but you have to promise that you won't say anything until I’ve finished.”

“I promise.”

“Right, well, this isn’t easy for me to say, so I suppose that I should just come right out and say it. Rose Tyler, I love you, and I have loved you for a very long time, and I’m sorry. I know I should have said something soo-“

“Doct-“

“You promised you wouldn’t interrupt, Rose. There’s another thing too. You should know that what’s left of the Time Vortex energy inside of you will give you more gifts in addition to Bad Wolf. One of those is an extended life time. So now that you have forever, do you think that you could spend it with me?”

“Oh Doctor, of course! I love you more than you could dream of and all that I have ever wanted is forever with you,” she said as she jumped up into his arms and pressed her lips.

Finally, they would have their forever.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So that’s it, the end. I hope y’all liked it. If y’all have any suggestions for what I should write next, leave a comment. Thank y’all so much for being so supportive. It’s been great


End file.
